A TurnAround for Weight Watchers
Written: Jan 23 '05
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Product Rating:
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Pros: never hungry, focus on healthier foods, less of a focus on tracking
Cons: misleading advertising: you still have to track, must plan ahead
The Bottom Line: Weight Watchers is realizing that there is no such thing as a one-size-fits-all diet.
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| stuckonpoe's Full Review: Weight Watchers TurnAround Program (Core / Flex Pl... |
Weight Watchers has introduced a new program called Turnaround. Besides the traditional flexpoints plan, Turnaround includes an alternative approach called the No Counting plan. Both approaches are designed to promote healthy and gradual weight loss. Based on your needs and preferences you can decide which is better suited to you: No Counting or Flexpoints.
The No Counting plan is being promoted as an alternative for members who don't want to track the point value of everything they eat, which is a must for success on their Flexpoints plan. On the No Counting plan, tracking is optional...except not really. There is a core list of foods included on this plan that I will detail later on. As long as you eat foods only from this list, you won't have to track. However, if you eat something outside of the core list, you must still account for it. So, say you want a baked potato, that's fine, you don't have to track the points value. As long as it is limited to one potato a day...that's a freebie. But say you're like most people and usually eat your baked potato with some sour cream or butter..then you have to count up the points for those extras. That's actually not that tough, combination foods are trickier, like lasagna or shrimp fried rice. But I see I'm getting a little ahead of myself here, so let me briefly explain this new plan and then tell you how I fared on it.
First off, I'll give a brief rundown on what the core list includes. It's a lengthy list and you can find all the details and specifics (and there are plenty of them) in their getting started book. I can't include everything but unless otherwise specified, you can eat as much as you want from this list to feel satisfied. Not stuffed, but comfortably satisfied
Vegetables & Fruits:
Either fresh, frozen or canned (no added fat, sauce or sugar)
Tomato paste, puree and sauce
Soups:
Fresh, canned, frozen or homemade (made only with core foods)
No, Cream of Broccoli is not core
Starches, Grains & Cereals:
-Barley
-Buckwheat (oh goody, unlimited buckwheat)
-Bulgur
-Cornmeal
-Couscous
-Kasha
-Popcorn(air-popped or 94% fat-free microwave popped only)
-Quinoa…what the??
-Rolled oats
-Starchy vegetables (e.g., peas, corn)
-Cooked (hot) cereal (any plain variety that does not contain added sugar)
Puffed wheat , puffed rice, shredded wheat, and 100% bran cereals that don't contain added sugar are limited to one meal a day and must be eaten with fat-free milk or fat-free plain yogurt.
Whole-wheat pasta or brown rice or potatoes is limited to one meal a day.
As you can tell, this is somewhat extensive and specific, not just in terms of what you can eat but in the limits it sets on what types of grains you can eat per day. As in whole-wheat pasta or brown rice once per day but not both. And I was surprised to see that bread was not on this list, not even whole-grain. I don't know, maybe because most commercial bread is processed.
Lean Meats, Poultry, Fish, Meat Substitutes, and Egg Products
I'm not going to go through this whole list. There are more cuts of meat on this list than state capitals. Suffice it to say, only lean cuts of beef and pork and skinless chicken are on this list
Ground beef with no more than 7% fat or ground turkey or ground chicken is limited to one meal a day.
Milk products and Dairy Substitutes
Milk products
-Fat-free cheese
-Fat-free cottage cheese
-Fat-free milk
-Fat-free, sugar-free pudding
-Fat-free sour cream
-Fat-free plain yogurt
Personally, I say yuck to all of these. The reason I joined Weight Watchers was so I could avoid this kind of bland fat-free diet food. I mean sure I drink skim milk….to wash down a krispy kreme donut. Otherwise…it’s gross. So there’s another five points to tack on.
Dairy Substitutes
-Soy milk (plain)
-Soy cheese
-Soy yogurt (plain)
Weight Watchers smoothies or fat-free, sugar-free instant hot cocoa or reduced-calorie dairy shakes is limited to once a day.
Oils, condiments & extras
-Fat-free dressings, mayonnaise and nonstick cooking spray
Finally, the 35 flexpoints are still there, but in the form of weekly points allowance. So that means the sour cream on your baked potato goes towards your allowance.
Ok, obviously I did not think much of this program before even starting it. The No Counting plan seems too strict and it looks like it requires way too much planning ahead. But I had to be fair and at least try it before I judged too harshly...right??
So after a week on the No Counting plan, I'll admit it wasn't as torturous as I had thought. It's difficult at first, but with a little planning, definitely doable. I do have a big point of contention though. It is virtually impossible not to track on this plan and live comfortably. And it is pretty misleading of Weight Watchers to advertise tracking is being optional. It is simply is not. You need some fat and well...taste in your diet and most of the core foods are fat-free. On the bright side though, tracking is not nearly as much of a focus as on flexpoints. Other than that respect though, I would say that it is a great complement to the somewhat successful but flawed Flexpoints program. The No Counting plan manages to sidestep the big flaws present in flexpoints.
For one thing, on the No Counting plan I was never hungry because as long as you are making the right eating choices you are allowed to eat as much as you want until you are satisfied. In fact, you are encouraged to find that point where you are comfortably satisfied and stop eating once you've reached it. On Flexpoints, if you don't make the smartest eating choices, you could still wind up hungry even after using all your points. I think it is in this respect that No Counting is superior to Flexpoints, not in terms of tracking.
And No Counting is inherently healthier as well. If you don't base your meals on that core list of healthy, nutritious foods, you don't eat. Trust me, those occasional treats that Weight Watchers says are a feature of the No Counting plan are indeed occasional. Those 35 points disappear quickly if you're not careful!
Oh..and one last point. The numbers don't lie. I lost 1.8 lbs after my first week on the No Counting plan. That's about comparable to the weight loss on flexpoints.
So, in conclusion flexpoints is great. But if you haven't had success with weight watchers in the past or feel your commitment to tracking wavering, I suggest you give their new No Counting plan a try. It's an excellent addition to a program with a proven track record of success.
Recommended:
Yes
Approximate Monthly Cost (US$) 44.00
Food Variety Restrictions A wide variety of allowed foods
Restrictiveness of Portions Satisfying
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Epinions.com ID:
stuckonpoe
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Member: LeeLee
Reviews written: 3
Trusted by: 0 members
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